For a week in late February 1910, two Seattle-bound trains remained trapped in deep snow near Stevens Pass at the small railroad town of Wellington. When the unrelenting snowfall turned to rain, avalanches began roaring down the mountainsides. Around 1:15 am, on March 1, one giant avalanche swept the trains off their tracks into the river canyon below, killing at least 96 passengers and crew. One hundred years later, the event remains the worst avalanche disaster in U.S. history.
To commemorate the disaster’s centennial, historical organizations are presenting programs and posting information on websites.
On Saturday, February 27, the Skykomish Historical Society hosted two writers of books about the Wellington Disaster: Gary Krist, author of The White Cascade; and Martin Burwash, who just published Vis Major. An overflow crowd of 200 attended the event to hear the authors speak. Missed it? Save the date for August 14, as the Society plans a second commemoration at the site of the Wellington Disaster along the Iron Goat Trail.
The Northwest Railway Museum featured Gary Krist at a fundraiser on March 5, 2010, and has posted historic photos from the Oberg collection on the Wellington Remembered website. The centennial has renewed interest in a catastrophe that remains one of King County’s little-known, but major historical events.
For more information about the Wellington Disaster, visit HistoryLink.com.
Locomotive and plow crews pose with steam rotary snow plow X-808. Courtesy of Northwest Railway Museum.
